Number of bids, number of bidders and bidding behavior in outer-continental shelf oil lease auction markets

Theoretical models of auction bidding markets typically treat number of bods and number of bidders as equivalent measures. When joint bidding opportunities exist, this assumption will often not hold. In cases such as offshore oil auctions, joint bidding is an extremely common occurrence. The present analysis of these auctions suggests that the actual number of bidding participants is more closely related with variables of interest (winning bids, average bid per acre, etc.) then is the simple number of bids. They argue that analyses such as that presented here are important in developing theoretical models that are useful in explaining or predicting actual bidding auction outcomes.